While not claiming to speak for all non-believers (although I used to be one. See here), I believe that many such people are actually searching for deep truths. They are continuously and severely disappointed by “religious” people who repetitively quote banal phrases while claiming to have profound beliefs. In other words, there is so little substance, and no depth of understanding in so many religious folks that it creates a mockery of their faith. Secondly, the believer often appears arrogant and self-righteous, which is offensive.
The non-believing truth seekers leave such an encounter feeling rightfully frustrated, so they mock what they heard.
On the other hand, I’ve found that when a believer is equipped with patience, knowledge and love, and is willing to graciously reason through their spiritual beliefs with a non-believer, new bridges of understanding are opened.
In 1 Pet 3:15, the Apostle Peter encouraged us to address the non-believer mentioned in your question in a humble manner:
…in your hearts, honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.
Share
Explore Other Topics
In considering the merits of various economic systems, we run the risk of arguing from man’s history back to God’s intent. We may even be caught examining our historical abuse and religious mismodeling of God’s intentions and then demanding legal protection from our own foolishness. This would be deductive reasoning
As you continue to explore your identity as a spiritual father, be willing to press deeper, to the true, biblical meaning of the term. We can colloquially say you are “fathering” certain individuals, but be willing to challenge yourself: is it really fathering, or perhaps discipling, or maybe just training?
Authentic believers in the Lord Jesus would never assume your morals are beneath theirs. Intolerant religious people certainly might, but they are more interested in you following their narrow-minded theological rulebook than in having you receive the unconditional love of God.
In our previous journal article {Ten Ways That God “Speaks,” Part 1} on this subject we learned four of the ten ways that the Lord speaks to His people. They included:
Judicial standing is the legal right of one party to accuse another of potential (or actual) harm. To have “standing” in a court of law, one party must demonstrate a personal stake in the issue at hand. Before Jesus’ death, Satan had legal access to stand before the Lord in
The scientific, not faith-based, evidence for ex-nihilo, instantaneous, organized creation is abundant. The 1st and 2nd Laws of Thermodynamics insist on a time when the universe was fully “wound up”. It is not eternal. What amazes me is the suspension of intellect that Darwinian evolutionists perform because of their deep
